Rococo basks in media spotlight
by Angela Jameson
An award-winning Norfolk restaurateur attracted a blaze of media coverage last week when he won a case in the small claims court against a customer who had refused to pay.
Nick Anderson, chef and owner of Rococo in King's Lynn, was featured in national and regional newspapers as well as on Yorkshire television and local Norfolk and Scottish radio.
Mr Anderson, who has become something of a local hero among Norfolk restaurateurs, recovered £270 from the customer and established the principle that complaints must be made at the time of the meal.
The court case, which has prompted many calls of congratulations and support from the industry, arose when Michael Stanley, a retired academic, stopped a cheque for nearly £350, four days after he and his guests had dined at Rococo.
An arbitration hearing at King's Lynn county court decided that Mr Stanley must pay the balance of the money he owed.
The dispute began when Mr Stanley's party joined 30 other guests at Rococo for a £45-a-head New Year's Eve set menu dinner. Mr Stanley did not complain during the meal, although when he paid he said he had not been entirely happy with it.
It was only the next day that he telephoned to make a formal complaint and his comments were then put in writing. Mr Anderson and his wife Anne received a letter detailing many criticisms of service and food.
Mr Stanley then stopped his original cheque for £349.40 and sent Mr Anderson another, for the sum of £79.40, to pay for the wine that had been consumed.
The Andersons said they were bewildered that Mr Stanley had not complained to them during the meal, giving them no opportunity to change the food or make reparation at the time.
The Andersons, who have run the Michelin Red M restaurant for four years, decided to take the case to a small claims court because they believed the allegations were very easy to disprove. Other guests who had eaten from the same set menu that night supplied letters of praise, which were shown to the judge.
Mr Anderson said that he was pleased the judge had established the principle that there is a right time to complain. "I hope people will learn that the restaurateur will bite back if a customer acts in such a way," he told Caterer. "I think this man will find it hard to eat in Norfolk now."
